As Hopkins plies his trade in the land of beaches and palm trees at his first Pro Bowl, he’s been soaking up knowledge from his fellow players and Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame wide receiver Michael Irvin. Hopkins and Texans long snapper Jon Weeks are set to play for Team Irvin in the annual NFL all-star game at 6 p.m. Sunday on ESPN at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu.

“Without a doubt, one of the best weeks I’ve ever had,” Hopkins said during a telephone interview following practice Saturday. “Every chance we get with Michael, he’s telling us stuff, more so other stuff than football. He’s an outgoing guy. It’s always good when you can hang around with him. Because of when I was born, he’s somebody I couldn’t watch in his prime years, but I know what he’s about and it’s good to be around him.”

In his third NFL season since being drafted in the first round out of Clemson, Hopkins’ breakthrough season was rewarded with his first Pro Bowl selection. Hopkins recorded a career-high 111 receptions for 1,521 yards and a franchise-record 11 touchdown catches.

Ambidextrous, Hopkins regularly secured catches with either hand. At a muscular 6-1, 218 pounds, Hopkins is strong enough to outmuscle cornerbacks for the football and used his 36-inch vertical leap to jump over them.

Catching passes this week from quarterbacks Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston and Teddy Bridgewater, Hopkins was joined on Team Irvin by receivers Julio Jones, A.J. Green and Allen Robinson.

Hopkins’ approach to the Pro Bowl, which traditionally has a laid-back atmosphere, is to enjoy himself and also try to win the game. Players for the winning Pro Bowl squad receive a $58,000 check while the losers get $29,000.

“I don’t need to show people anything, me being here says enough with what I’ve done this season,” Hopkins said. “I just want to come out here and have fun in Hawaii. It’s not like playing in the Super Bowl.

“It’s all fun and games, but you still want to win. We’ve got some of the most competitive guys. It’s a scrimmage, but none of these guys want to lose.”

The Texans hired former New York Giants receivers and quarterbacks coach Sean Ryan following their playoff loss after firing receivers coach Stan Hixon. Hopkins had a good conversation this week with Giants Pro Bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. about Ryan.

“I talked to Odell about him and he had nothing but good stuff to say about him,” Hopkins said. “They did a great job with their receiving corps. I don’t see anything falling off.”

As much as Hopkins has enjoyed the Pro Bowl experience, he’d prefer to still be playing this week at the Super Bowl. The Texans won the AFC South division title, but lost 30-0 to the Kansas City Chiefs in an AFC wild-card playoff game at NRG Stadium. The Texans overcame using four quarterbacks during the regular season, including Brian Hoyer, Ryan Mallett, T.J. Yates and Brandon Weeden, to make it to the postseason.

“You always have better expectations for your team and yourself,” Hopkins said. “Being in the Super Bowl, that’s every guy in the NFL’s ultimate goal. We know we have a good team. We know what we did with the circumstances and still made the playoffs.

“I don’t know too many teams that did what we did last year and made the playoffs with as many quarterbacks as we had. Nobody panicked. You’ve got to give credit to the coaching staff for having the guys ready.”

Heading into the fourth year of a $7.637 million rookie contract that includes a $3.926 million signing bonus and $6.181 million guaranteed, Hopkins is due a $1 million base salary in 2016 and a $445,004 roster bonus on the fifth day of training camp. The Texans can pick up a fifth-year team option for 2017 next year.

They had a preliminary meeting with Hopkins’ agent, Hadley Engelhard, in December. While no deal is imminent, the Texans are expected to eventually sign Hopkins to a lucrative long-term contract extension.

Hopkins has kept his focus and offseason goals simple, saying he wants to “enjoy my family and get better at football.”